Meet The Family
by ranDum InSanity
Summary: Ax's father has now landed on Earth and met all the Animorphs. What does Noorlin think of Tobias's secret? Read and find out. Then review please!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own the Animorphs or any of the other characters in this fic.

Noorlin's POV

--Forlay, I do not wish for you to get hurt. I also need someone to cover for me while I am gone. Will you please just stay here on the home world.-- I said to my wife. I was planning to use the ship that I had repaired to go to earth and bring Aximili back to the home world. Of course Forlay, being the typical mother that she is, wanted to come with me.

While I generally didn't mind her worrying, this was not the time for her to be having a fit. I didn't have the time. There was only a two minute window for which I could leave the surface of the planet in relative ambiguity, after that I would have to get a permit from the military telling them where I was going. Those two minutes were one of the few holes in our security, and one that had taken me months to find.

This was not a chance that I was going to pass up. I needed to save my youngest son from the same fate as his brother. Aximili was the last chance that I had for raising a son. A child.

Forlay and I had been very strict on Elfangor, nearly ordering him into the military. We had raised him to be a honorable warrior. We thought that we had raised him right, then he disappeared for five years.

Those were the hardest five years of our lives. Both Forlay and I were afraid that he had died. Then one day he reappeared, or at least his body had. His mind, his personality was not the same ever since that time. He went from being a happy eager to please child to a bitter, pessimistic adult. Yet he never wanted to talk about it.

During the time that he was missing, Forlay had conceived again, this time it was with Aximili. The stress of Elfangor's disappearance made the pregnancy nearly unbearable, and she nearly lost Aximili several time in the course of it. After Aximili's birth, the doctors told her that she would never be able to carry another child.

--Noorlin, please. I am just as worried about him as you are.-- Forlay said.

--Forlay I wish that I could bring you, but I do not want you going into a potentially dangerous situation.--

--If it is dangerous, then why are you going and I not.-- She replied, even though she knew exactly why.

--Forlay. I am a trained warrior. You are not. I might be retired but I can still tail fight better than you. Therefore you are staying here and I am going.-- I said as I got into the repaired fighter.

Just before I lifted off, I heard her whisper, --I cannot lose another child, please be safe.--

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Though we had said the ritual of parting, knowing that we wouldn't be seeing each other in a very long time, I still couldn't bring myself to believe that I had truly left the homeworld, and my wife, behind.

The journey to the planet "Earth" was very long, very boring, and very stressful. I couldn't help but imagine what the planet would be like, how well the Yeerks had set up defences, or whether or not my son, my Aximili-kala, would still be alive.

By the time that I had arrived, I was terrified. I could only hope that my cloaking device would hold up as I exited Z-Space. I could only hope that Aximili wasn't dead, or worse.

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Once I had landed on the planet's surface, in a wooded area for cover, I used the computer to search for Aximili's DNA. I had heard the reports of the morphing humans while I had been searching for a time to leave the planet, but I was skeptical.

As the computer began to run its search, I was startled to find that there were two people running around with my son's DNA. I could only hope that this was one of the morphing humans and not The Abomination. The only question that I could think of was why Aximili would allow someone to do that. Acquiring an Andalite was against our culture's traditions.

After looking at the location of the two sets of DNA, I found that one was nearest to my current location. There was no way to truly decipher which of the two signatures was the correct one, so I decided that simply following at least one of the signatures for long enough would have to suffice.

As I began to follow closest signature, I came across a hard flat surface with lines painted down the center. I initially wondered as to what its purpose was and if it had any true function during the day, for it was night when I landed. While I would've liked to have stayed and pondered the use of this, what I assumed was a primitive transport corridor; I had more important things to do. Such as find my son, who at that moment was moving away from me.

Without realizing the danger of my actions, I trotted across the primitive trans. cor.

All of a sudden there was yelling and screaming and a squealing sound. A large vehicle had rounded the corner and was coming right at me!


	2. Chapter 2

A/n.: So, I have been going through all my old, backed up files and found this story. Man, I love the story line, but the way I wrote it is total crap. So, I'm redoing it! This is for all of my past reviewers and those who care.

Disclaimer: I wish I owned Animorphs, but, since I have no fairy godparents, that isn't going to be happening any time soon.

Chapter Two

My father had been really busy with the animals recently. We had gotten three hit-by-a-car wolfs, one electrocuted bald eagle, a poisoned deer, in one week. And it was only Wednesday. When dad came running in to the barn asking if I would like to help him with a very bizarre hit and run case, I was only too happy to oblige.

Who wouldn't like to skip out on homework to help save animals?

Before we left, I noticed that dad had grabbed all sorts of random medical equipment as though he didn't know what animal it was he was going to be treating. That was odd for him to not know what he was going to be dealing with.

"Dad, didn't the person who called his in tell you what type of animal it was?" I asked.

"The person who called it in just recently moved here to America and doesn't know much about our animals here," he replied simply. "I had a hard enough time understanding what they were trying to say through their accent."

I decided not to ask any more questions until we got there, but, when we arrived, I was struck speechless.

The "animal" was an Andalite, and a very large one at that. His tailblade was about five inches longer than Ax's, and slightly wider. It was just as sharp though.

I could tell right away that it wasn't Ax or any of the other Andalites that we (the Animorphs) had encountered. I could also tell that he was in a great deal of distress. His main eyes were wide and his pupils were dilated. He had a huge patch of skin that was covered in road rash that was bleeding freely. To top it off, he was swinging his tail at anyone who got within range of his blade.

Dad looked shocked when he saw what he had to go up against. He had never even seen this kind of creature before, in his imagination or otherwise. There was no way he was going to get anywhere near this Andalite to treat it properly without getting his head chopped off.

After watching dad trying to get close to the Andalite without any success, I decided to try my hand at calming him (the Andalite) down. I could only pray that he had as good of a hold over his emotions and pain as Ax had.

"Shhh. It's okay," I said in my most soothing voice.

The Andalite turned one stalk eye in my direction. At least I knew I had one fourth of his attention on me. Whether that was enough or not was still up in the air.

"Don't worry. We're here to help you, sir," I said, trying to be as respectful as possible. I was hoping to sound enough like an Andalite to get him to calm down and approach me voluntarily. If that didn't work I suppose that I could always morph. It didn't really matter now anyways, my father knew at least of alien's exisistance.

Dad chose this time to interrupt. "Cassie, don't go near him. I don't want you to get hurt."

I chose to ignore my father and continue watching the Andalite. Well, at least I knew that he was paying some sort of attention to me. The rest of his attention was focused on my father and on the road, like he was trying to steady himself.

"Sir, we only want to treat your wounds. We are not Yeerks. We are only doctors who wish to help you," I said, trying to keep the Andalite's focus on me.

This time he faced me with both main eyes and let his stalk eyes wander. I noticed that he had his pain masked in much the same way that Ax did when he was wounded. The more I thought about it the more that I realized he looked very similar to the one Andalite that I actually knew personally.

--Who are you? -- He demanded.

"My name is Cassie. That is my father, Walter. I would like to know what your name is now," I said in the calmest voice I could manage. I was on the verge of panicking, if the Andalite didn't start to trust me, he would eventually either pass out from blood loss or chop me to bits.

"CASSIE, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" Dad yelled. He was desperate to get me away from what he thought to be a dangerous, wild, and unknown animal. He did have more experience in working with animals, but I had more experience talking to aliens.

I continued to ignore him and focus entirely on the Andalite.

--My name is Noorlin-Sirinal-Cooraf. I came to this planet to find my son…--

"Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill," I finished for him. I couldn't help but start smiling. I knew that he and Ax were similar, I just didn't know how much.

"What? You know what this creature is Cassie?" Dad said, utterly bewildered. Not that I blame him. Here he was, watching his daughter converse with a potentially deadly creature that he thought just moments ago wouldn't have been able to talk.

"Yes Dad. In fact I just recently did brain surgery on this man's son to remove his _tria_ gland," I said. I was truly getting annoyed at the fact that Dad kept interrupting. Ax's dad could easily remove either of our heads if we said something that offended him.

--Aximili had _yamphut_?-- Noorlin asked worriedly. --How is he now? Is he alright?--

"Well if you come with me back to my house, you'll get to see for yourself," I said happily. I couldn't help but be relieved that Noorlin hadn't gotten violent from the pain. "But first, I need to wash out those wounds."

Hooray!!! Chappy two finished!!! And revised in one night. Ahhh, thankfully it din't need as much repair as Chapter 1.

I worship all reviewers!!


	3. Chapter 3

A/n.: So I just got done rereading this story to see what really needed work, and oh my god, I sucked at writing two years ago. For those of you who have read this before, I just wanted to let you know that I have tried to keep as much of the old things in here that I liked but some of the chapters shall end up being completely reworked. The last two chapters weren't so bad, but they are now over 300 words longer than they were.

Disclaimer: I love Animorphs, but Scholastic and don't know or like me. Therefore I do not own Animorphs.

Chapter Three

All the way home, I kept wondering if the Yeerks were going to ambush our car and infest us, yet we arrived home unscathed. I knew that it wouldn't be long before they realized that there was another Andalite on Earth.

I pitied Noorlin. He was crammed in the trailer that I had sent Dad back to the house to get, and, seeing as how Andalites are claustrophobic, he couldn't have been having fun. Tack that onto the fact that he had several open wounds on his side that, no matter how well bandaged they were, were getting jostled around, bumped against, and all around being put into circumstances that COULD NOT have been comfortable. I just hoped that he made it back to the house without passing out.

At least the roads around here were fairly nice. Some of the farmers who lived in this area had petitioned to get the roads repaved several months ago and had gotten their wish. Granted it had been the Sharing who had funded this project, and that was only because this was the road that was being used to get up to their logging site. At least there was a silver lining to that whole debacle

Once we reached the house, I helped dad unload Noorlin from the trailer (he was _not_ a happy camper) then ran inside to call Erek. If anyone could help me keep an injured Andalite safe, Erek could. Besides, he was there when I was frantically running around trying to save Ax's life, so if Noorlin had any questions about that, he could just ask Erek. I just hoped that one of his questions wouldn't be "how did she know where the gland was located."

That would be a long explanation.

As I ran inside, I realized that I probably could've called on the cell phone that I have that is supposed to be used for emergencies, only to realize that Ax still hadn't put the phone back together. That's the last time that I lend him any of my electronic devices.

I was very glad that I had his phone number committed to memory; otherwise I would've had to waste time searching through piles of papers in my room in search of it. Grabbing the phone and dialing, I didn't have to wait long for Erek to pick up.

"Hi Cassie, what's up?"

"How's your phone line?" I asked. I couldn't be too careful when it came to phone tapping.

"Cassie, my phone is a part of my body, I'm fairly confident in saying that it is secure," Erek sighed. I almost think that he thought that I forgot that he was an android.

"I need your help. Ax's dad just landed on Earth and was hit by a truck and…"

"And you want me to help you watch him? Sure, I'll be right over." Erek interrupted.

"Thank you Erek!"

"No problem."

After calling Erek, I decided that I had better call an "emergency meeting" and get everyone to meet Noorlin. Besides, Jake had told me earlier in the week that there was going to be a Sharing meeting that needs crashing and this would be a good time to have the meeting.

Everyone was fairly easy to locate, except Ax and Tobias who have no phones other than my destroyed one. I had to get them by actually morphing and flying out to find them. If this were a real emergency, I really don't think that any information would get to those two until it was too late.

Just as I started morphing, Dad walked into the barn. Needless to say he was thoroughly grossed out, yet awed, by what he saw. I suppose that I would be too if I were watching my child turn into an osprey.

--And that is morphing,-- I said once I was able to, just as an explanation for what dad had just seen.

"Cassie? Are you okay!? Did it hurt!?" Dad said, freaking out thoroughly.

--Dad, I've done this practically on a daily basis for several months now. Have I seemed okay? I think I have.-- I said, shaking my newly formed bird head. --Besides, it's fun.--

"And it doesn't hurt?" Dad asked, still obviously worried.

--It shouldn't,-- Noorlin said from the stall where he was resting.--Our scientists worked for years on perfecting the technology before it was given to anyone. Pain was one of the first obstacles in the creation of the morphing ability to be spoken about and taken care of.--

--Are you done with your interrogation yet Dad? I need to go find Ax and Tobias in the forest before Jake and the rest of us get here.-- I said impatiently. Knowing Ax, he's probably teaching Tobias one of the Andalite rituals……

Wait a minute… I don't think that Noorlin knows about Tobias.

--This is going to be interesting,-- I said snickering.

-- "What is"-- asked Noorlin and Dad at the same time.

--You'll see,-- I said as I lifted off.

A.n.: Hooray, three chapters edited!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

(Tobias's p.o.v.)

All that week, Ax had decided, since I wasn't in school, he was going to teach me about my Andalite heritage. So, when Cassie flew up and told us that there was going to be an emergency meeting at her barn, I almost breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, I got a break from the constant lectures on rituals, history (what Ax could remember of it), science, and all those other things that you really wish you didn't have to know.

The most recent of the lectures had been one that applied to my parental situation and was rather depressing. The only thing that I could really be thankful for was the fact that on the science, applied math and other classes that were generally boring to me, Ax couldn't remember everything that he was taught. He his excuse was that there was a certain female that he obviously had the hots for. That is, until she "put some tail into him" for staring.

But, now that Cassie had showed up, I got a break from learning about Andalite wars and idioms, and got to participate, once again, in the ongoing Yeerk war. That was the only war that really mattered to me at that time.

Heading to Cassie's barn, Ax ran as fast as his four legs could carry him while I just fluttered above him. Flying is faster than running any day.

--So, Cassie, what's the meeting going to be about?-- I asked. We had a meeting planned for the next day, so it had to be something that was either very serious or needing to be dealt with immediately.

Cassie then burst out laughing. She never does that anymore. The only one in our pathetic group of misfits that laughs on a regular basis would be Marco, but even he doesn't laugh when we're going to be having an emergency meeting.

--Cassie, what is so funny?-- I asked.

--Oh, I just can't wait to see his expression when he finds out about you,-- Cassie said, laughing manically. That was just getting a little creepy.

--Whom are you speaking of, Cassie?-- asked Ax. At least I wasn't the only one left out of the loop.

--You'll see when we get there,-- Cassie snickered.

Thus, we were kept in the dark about who it was that we were going to be seeing all the way there. I was beginning to believe that Cassie had planned out some form of surprise party for either Ax or I. A reason for a surprise party escaped my mind though. My birthday had already passed and no one knew what Ax's Earth birthday would be.

When we arrived, Ax and I saw an Andalite in the barn at the same time. An Andalite that definitely _wasn't_ Visser 3.

--_Father?!-- _Ax said, completely shocked. Had it not been a life or death situation for me, I would've found it rather funny. Ax had nearly fallen over when he had slid to a stop.

He looked at me with one stalk eye, glared at Cassie with the other, and watched his father with his main eyes. Ax and I shared the same thought.

'We just covered this.'

* * *

(Ax's p.o.v.)

I then realized what Cassie found so funny. I could only hope that she hadn't told my father yet about Tobias being Elfangor's son. Humans and Andalites have completely different outlooks on what to do with illegitimate children. Even if Tobias wasn't truly an illegitimate child because Loren and Elfangor were married, my father didn't know this. This was a subject that was not to be trod upon lightly. With my father here, Tobias's life had become a balancing act.

A balancing act that could get him killed or enslaved, and could get me severely punished. Depending on how mad he was, I could very easily end up in the same situation as Tobias.

I decided to do something that I would normally never do. I skipped greeting my father, grabbed Cassie, and told her I needed to speak with her.

"Ax, what is going on? I thought you would jump at the chance to introduce Tobias to your dad," she said once we were out of ear shot of my father.

-- Cassie, do you have any idea what could happen to Tobias if my father finds out? My father could think that Tobias is Elfangor's _illegitimate_ child, which we both know is not the case, and father could kill Tobias because it is legal in our society. There are many reasons that Elfangor never told anyone about what happened here on Earth yet it is not a stretch of the mind that could lead one to believe that he did some things are not quite legal or morally correct,-- I said.

"Well, that's not good. _Why didn't you say that sooner?!" _Cassie practically growled.

--Because there is one way, other than not telling father, to keep Tobias safe,-- I said.

"Let Noorlin warm up to him, then drop the bomb?" Cassie asked.

--Precisely, but what would dropping a bomb do for the situation?--

A/n: So… how was that?


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **I don't write nearly as well as K.A. Applegate. I will never be K.A. Applegate. I am only borrowing her characters.

* * *

Chapter Five

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3rd person p.o.v.

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Noorlin was absolutely appalled by his son's behavior. Had Aximili really changed that much over the time that he'd been on Earth? Had he truly forgotten the proper way to greet a family member? And, what was going on with the bird that needed to have so much secrecy? The bird couldn't be a spy could he? Noorlin decided he could try and guess but felt that any guesses that he made right now were going to be incorrect.

Particularly since he knew nothing of these teens other than the rumors that had been spread throughout the homeworld. There had been tales told of a group of humans who saved the invasion of Leeran Homeworld, but none of these were backed by any sort of evidence. The shear fact that these "Heroes of Leera" had somehow managed to call out to a ship which was passing to near to them in Z-Space was nearly impossible.

It didn't take a rocket scientist to realize the emotion shift that happened after Cassie and Ax re-entered the barn. Ax had the Andalite equivalent of an awkward grin on his face, and Cassie looked like she was thinking about all of the words she had said just in case she had accidently dropped a hint. Tobias was the only one who was acting like he normally did. He was just preening his feathers and looking out the window in the barn to see if the others were headed towards them.

--Just what we need,-- groaned Tobias in private thought speak to Cassie and Ax. --Marco's going to be the first to arrive.--

Cassie's only response to this was hitting her head with the palm of her hand. As if the situation they were in couldn't get any worse.

Ax was to busy speaking to his father and apologizing for his previous behavior that he didn't even notice he was being spoken to.

--Hey homies! What's up?--Marco said before noticing Noorlin. --And who's the latest fur ball?--

--We'll tell you when everyone else gets here,-- replied Tobias. --Rachel incoming--

Rachel's bird morph swooped in gracefully and landed next to Tobias. The relationship between them becoming completely obvious to everyone in the barn who didn't know after Rachel gently nuzzled Tobias while still in bird morph. Rachel then fluttered down to the floor of the barn and demorphed as quickly as she possibly could. The meeting was, after all, supposedly an emergency.

Jake was the only one who didn't arrive quickly, but he was excused in everyone's eyes because he had to come up with an excuse that would get him out of the house without arousing suspicion from Tom.

After Jake got rid of the sqeaky rusty old bike that he'd had to ride in order to avoid suspicion, the meeting finally commenced.

"Well as you all can see, we have another Andalite on Earth. But, I suppose this could be considered a special case. A _very_ special case. Guys, I'd like you to meet Noorlin-Sirinal-Cooraf, Ax's dad," Cassie said in a very serious voice.

This statement shocked nearly everyone in the barn, for they had only recently found out about who Tobais's father was and here, standing in front of them, was Tobais's grandfather. A relative of Tobais's who wasn't a human. A relative who, for some strange reason, was paying no more attention to him than most people would show a real bird on the side of the road.

Almost everyone also figured that there had to be some reason for this, except for Marco, who voiced his thoughts outright.

"Does he know about Tobias being mphglupfn…" Marco managed to get out before Cassie clapped her hand over Marco's mouth and dragged him out of the barn. Of course, of all the times to say that_,_ Marco just had to choose when the poor man was just meeting everyone to break the news. News that had to be postponed for as long as possible.

"Cassie, what's wrong?" Jake asked. While Cassie was never the most outgoing of people, she most certainly would never go so far as to cut someone off in mid-sentence. She generally would listen to their opinions before stating her own. Rachel was the one that everyone would've expected to clap a hand over Marco's mouth.

Tobias decided to tell everyone the current predicament for Cassie, since she couldn't use private thought speak. --Guys. He doesn't know about me, and, as of right now, we do not want him to find out. You see, he probably wouldn't believe us if we told him that Elfangor and my mother were married, and, due to one of the more bizarre Andalite laws, I could be put to death for being Elfangor's illegitimate son. I'm not but that doesn't matter because, in Noorlin's eye's, I am.--

"That's messed up!" Marco said loudly, drawing the attention of Walter and Noorlin, who were completely out of the loop. "I mean…"

"MARCO! SHUT UP!" Rachel yelled, causing every living being in the barn jumped about a foot. "For once in your life, think before you open your mouth."

"Getting back to business…Cassie was there anything else that you needed to tell us?" Jake said trying to regain some kind of order.

"Nope… That was pretty much it," Cassie said. The meeting hadn't really intended to be an emergency meeting, but it kind of turned out to be one.

--I have something.--Tobias said in public thought speak, earning a glare from Marco, who just wanted to get home and goof around on the computer. --Ax and I located a new Yeerk pool entrance at the school yesterday. It's in the chemistry lab's chemical closet. Unfortunantly, I was too far away to hear the password.--

"So what are we going to do about this one?" Cassie asked, even though she knew just as well as the rest of the Animorphs what was inevitably going to end up happening.

"Same thing we do every time there's a new Yeerk threat," Jake said.

"Try to take over the world?" Marco said, quoting 'Pinky and the Brain' and earning the stares of Noorlin and Walter. "What?!"

"You're an idiot, what do you think?" Rachel said rolling her eyes.

"We're going down there, aren't we?"

"Yep."

* * *

Though the meeting had originally been called for the main reason of introducing Noorlin to the rest of the Animorphs, it quickly changed into an actual meeting with an actual serious meaning. Though neither Marco, nor anyone else really liked having to have an actual meeting it was a necessary evil that, if not done, could leave the planet earth in shambles.

Plans were quickly sorted through with an efficiency that, according to Noorlin, rivaled the Andalite military.

* * *

--If your meetings normally go this quickly, I can see why the Yeerks are having such a hard time taking over this planet,-- Noorlin said, completely shocked at how quickly the teens surrounding him had moved from calling one another idiots to getting down to business.

"And the fact that there are about six billion, quickly evolving, always-ready-for-warfare humans spread over six continents has nothing to do with it?" Marco said sarcastically, earning glares from Jake, Rachel, and Cassie.

Tobias would've glared, but seeing as he was in his hawk body, his expression was permanently etched into a scowl. Glaring would only leave him looking the same as when he wasn't "glaring."

Ax might have glared if it weren't for the fact that he was still having issues dealing with the whole "identifying sarcasm" aspect of the English language.

--That might have something to do with it as well. Now tell me, are all humans truly ready for warfare at any given time?—Noorlin asked, having not understood the sarcasm.

"Anyways, getting back to business. I suppose we are all in agreement on the latest plan to get into the Yeerk pool? Cassie and Rachel will be partnered up and will enter via the chem. closet entrance with everyone else hitching a ride. Yes? Good. If I don't get home soon, mom is going to KILL ME!" Jake said, getting up to leave.

--I seriously doubt that. She is your mother, what reason would she have to kill you?-- Noorlin asked, shocked at the thought of a mother killing her child.

"I wasn't being serious. But, today is her birthday and we got reservations for this new, swanky, Italian restaurant. If I'm late they'll be so upset with me, I'll be grounded until I'm eighty," Jake said while picking up the old bike again and climbing onto it.

"I'd better be going too. Video games don't play themselves ya know," Marco said, getting up.

"You are an idiot," Rachel stated matter-of-factly.

Slowly but surely, all of the Animorphs left to go about their normal lives to the point that only Cassie, Ax, Tobias, and Noorlin were left in the barn (Walter having left to go inside sometime during the meeting.)

--Well, I need to go hunt. I'll see you guys later.-- Tobias said, swooping out of the barn's loft window, leaving the other three alone.

The two Andalites and one human girl stood silently watching him fly outside and towards his meadow. Though Noorlin had some questions for Cassie and his son about where he was to be staying (and about the secrecy that followed the one who was apparently called Tobias), seeing a bird with only two wings be able to fly was such an amazing sight that he didn't dare say anything until Tobias had disappeared over the crest of one of the hills on the farm.

Deciding against asking the more awkward of the two questions that he had, Noorlin asked another, slightly more pressing one.

--Where am I to stay?--

Cassie turned and, looking at Noorlin's bandaged legs, said, "Right here where dad and I can make sure you won't get an infection or anything. Ax can stay with you if you want."

--That sounds good,--Noorlin said, then headed back into the stall that he had been placed in, laid down, and promptly fell asleep. The day had been a very strenuous one, so no one could blame him, though it was a rather worrisome sight for Ax. Adult Andalites only lay down if they were incrediably tired or ill.

Cassie stayed just long enough to make sure that both father and son would comfortable for the rest of the night, before heading inside, collapsing onto her bed, and falling asleep herself.

**A.n.: So there's that one done. The grammar didn't seem to be too terrible to me in this chapter, but English is **_**not**_** my best subject in school.**


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Animorphs, chicken pot pie, or a cat. I do, however, own two dogs and lots of bragging rights in karate and French.

Chapter Six

After the last meeting, the lives of the Animorphs suddenly became far more hectic. Not only did they have school and other activities, but now they had to also plan for a major battle. Working on homework was beginning to take a back seat to the more important saving the world. Unfortunately, this kind of stress was becoming a regular part of their lives.

Even the normally calm and unflappable Ax was showing a little wear and tear this time around, though.

Everyone was actually quite surprised that Tobias wasn't on the verge of committing suicide or something along those lines. All of the Animorphs knew not to even attempt to complain about how stressed they were if they were in Tobias's presence. While they were juggling school and lives as alien fighting teenagers with a death wish, Tobias was juggling keeping his heritage secret from his grandfather, learning more about his heritage, planning for a major battle, and getting to know his grandfather better.

None of the other Animorphs could even come close to the level of stress Tobias was feeling.

Luckily, this time they all had someone to rant to about how stressed they were becoming. Noorlin turned out to be an excellent listener/ therapist, particularly after Cassie gave him another dose of painkillers (which he said he didn't need but Cassie could tell he did).

There was only one problem with this "telling of one's stressful life to the poor injured Andalite stuck in a stall." Everyone except Tobias took advantage of it. This only caused Noorlin to become even more suspicious of the hawk that was his youngest son's friend.

Tobias didn't ever tell his feelings on the current situation to his grandfather. In fact, the only people that he'd rant to were Cassie and Ax. Needless to say, Noorlin wasn't getting to know Tobias and vice versa, but at the current time, there wasn't much that either of them could do about it. Noorlin didn't know Tobais well enough to know what subjects to talk about around him, and Tobais didn't want to accidently drop hints as to who he was.

The only thing that Noorlin had learned about Tobias was that Tobias obviously had some secret that all of the Animorphs knew but refused to tell him what it was.

So like any curious parent who was trying to get to know more about his child's friends, Noorlin began to probe his son for information. When he wasn't drugged out of his mind, of course.

--Aximili?-- Noorlin called over to his son.

--Yes father?-- Ax asked, worriedly. The last time his father had used that tone of voice on him was when Ax had failed one of his many xenobiology quizzes. Again.

--I was wondering if there is any particular reason to why none of your friends, or you for that matter, have ever told me any shred of information about the nothlit. Tobias, I believe his name was. He isn't a criminal is he?--

If it weren't for the fact that this could've become a deadly situation, Ax would've begun to smile. Tobias being a criminal for any reason, other than being bullied into it, was utterly preposterous.

--Father, there are reasons for every secret to be kept, and Tobias has a very good reason for keeping his secret a secret. A reason that could involve his life or death. Tobias is not a criminal in any sort of the word, yet he could be put to death because of his secret.-- Ax said as calmly as he possibly could. He swung his stalk eyes in a wide sweep hoping against hope that he would see one of the other Animorphs so they could come and get him out of this mess. This was not something he wanted to talk to his father about.

--I can understand keeping some secrets, but what I do not understand is why everything regarding Tobias is kept locked away. Compared to the other humans that I have met, I know nothing about him. Particularly when I compare him to the human Marco who, just the other day, when I asked him to tell me about himself, went so far as to tell me his favorite brand and color of underwear, which is apparently is a taboo subject here.-- Noorlin said.

Ax had to try very hard to not either look away and sigh in exasperation or burst out laughing at how little his father knew about the human obsession with covering their bodies even when it was practically steaming outside.

Except for on the beach. Then they wore practically nothing.

--Father, Tobias is my friend and I will never tell any secret of his to anyone no matter how trustworthy they may seem until Tobias chooses to tell them himself. Particularly one that could mean his death.-- Ax said exasperatedly.

This statement just made matters worse. Noorlin was now more confused about the situation regarding the young boy.

--If he isn't a criminal, then what could he possibly be?-- Noorlin thought to himself. --An Andalite nothlit who became one out of cowardice? No, it is be highly unlikely Aximili would ever become such an obviously close friend with a person such as that. Then what type of secret could he possibly have that could cause his death if it was told to me?--

After a while of standing there in awkward silence with his father obviously pondering the reason behind Tobias's secret, Ax left, believing the conversation to be over.

--That's it! Now I know why Tobias is keeping his secret so hidden from me! But why would a _yeerk_ want that body. And more importantly, why is Aximili being friends with one.--

**A/n.: Well, now that this one is done, I am proud to announce the continuation of this story! Updates will be very sporadic, but I will try my best to get a chapter up every once and a while.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A.n.: So here it is, the long awaited seventh chapter to Meet the Family. And when I say long, I mean loooooooong. Also, I'd like to take this time to tell you that this story takes place between books 32 and 33. It will spill over into book 33 in later chapters, but, for now, think of it more as a Megamorphs type story.**

Disclaimer: I really don't feel like writing a disclaimer, but I must for the characters in here do not belong to me.

Chapter Seven

Tobais's p.o.v.

I couldn't believe it. One day I had next to no family to speak of, and the next I was up to my eyeballs in relatives. Okay, so maybe it took more than one day for me to get that far, but I had a family that I could actually talk with without being afraid that I would get a beer bottle thrown at my head for being born. I finally had a relative who gave a shit.

Granted, he was about the same age that I was, but it was better than nothing.

But the problem still remained. I couldn't talk to my grandfather for fear of him discovering that I was, in fact, related to him.

I had always dreamed of having an adult that I could talk to about my problems. Well, now I had that adult, but I still couldn't talk to him. While the rest of the Animorphs were able to use him as their personal psychiatrist, and, in the process, learn more about the latest alien to land on planet Earth. I was stuck talking to the tree that I generally perched on during the night.

--I can't take this much longer,-- I said, banging my head on the tree. –I just know that he suspects something. Especially with the way Ax has been hanging out with me recently. I mean how could he not know something's up?—

--Tobais? I was not under the impression that Earth trees had the ability to speak as Andalite trees do.—

Somehow Ax had managed to sneak up on me while I was ranting to the tree.

--Andalite trees can talk?—I asked. Well, that was news to me. I had always assumed that plants were mainly inanimate.

--Only certain species have the ability, and their speech is not in any form of a language as we know it,-- Ax replied. –More often than not, these trees are called "Guide trees" and are passed on to the first born child.—

--So, Elfangor had one?—I couldn't help but be intrigued. Here was something that I might have inherited if I had been born an Andalite and not some freak of nature.

--Yes, he did. I believe that it was called Hala Fala. I was never able to visit it, though, because I am not the first born and neither was my mother. I would have inherited one from her if she was.—Ax said, smiling in that way that only Andalites can smile. --I can almost guarantee that Hala Fala knows of your existence. Elfangor visited it almost religiously whenever he was visiting and would spend hours leaning his head against it and pouring his soul out to his guide tree. Father never went near him while he was like that, so you don't need to worry about you because he was eavesdropping.—

--Thanks for telling me that, Ax. That's just great. The entirety of the Yeerk army and one Andalite tree knows about me,-- I said, sarcasm dripping off my voice. I could only hope that Ax could pick up on it. --And, so you know, trees here don't talk. I just needed rant to something.—

Luckily for me, Ax didn't push the matter and instead asked if I would "assist him in procuring some delicious Cinnabons." I was almost glad right then and there that his father was still relatively laid up for now. The last thing that I needed was two Cinnabon, sugar, and taste crazed Andalites running around the mall. Besides, we found out that Noorlin actually didn't have the morphing power.

Originally we had believed that he had the power just because he was an Andalite. Then Marco brought up the ever-so-obvious question of why he hadn't just morphed out of his injuries. When he told us that he didn't have the power, we were all rather shocked. I guess that we sort of assumed that he must have it because he was an Andalite.

I had already learned the basic history of the morphing technology, and I knew that the technology was currently very expensive on the Andalite homeworld. So expensive that only the really rich, famous, or military member could get it.

I also knew that Noorlin was an ex-military officer, but I didn't realize that he predated the mandatory acceptance of the morphing powers. I didn't realize he was that _old._

When I first told Ax that, he almost did a nosedive onto Marco's lap he was laughing so hard. This only caused Marco to think that Ax was drunk. Ax got a lecture on why he was not old enough to drink, but I was having too much fun making up scenarios (and telling them to Ax) where I would say that to Noorlin's face. In short, I really don't think that Ax remembers any of that conversation.

Eventually, it was decided that two things were to happen. Ax was never allowed near alcoholic beverages and Noorlin would receive the morphing power before our next mission. Luckily for me, he didn't have it yet (or so I thought.) Even taking just Ax to the mall required back up to help control him.

--Okay Ax. Here's the plan. We're going to fly over to Rachel's and see if she's willing to come along with proper clothes in hand. If she can't, we'll resort to plan B,-- I said, trying to sound like I actually wanted to go. I never have liked the mall. I have to many bad memories regarding that place.

--What's plan B?—Ax asked.

--We walk.—

* * *

Thankfully for us, Rachel couldn't possibly turn down an opportunity to go shopping, even with a two hour time limit. Within thirty minutes of us arriving at the mall, Rachel had already dragged us through at least five stores and loaded us up with about fifty pounds of bags each. For the first time in my short, teenage life, I realized how glad I was that there was the two hour time limit. Rachel had been known to shop nonstop for up to twelve hours.

By the time that we'd reached the fifth store I finally worked up the nerve to tell Rachel that we needed to take a break.

"Come on Tobias, just this last store. I promise to be quick and not buy too much," Rachel said, nearly dragging me into the store by my ear.

"Rachel, if we are in here for more than five minutes, I'm gonna tell Ax that the reason this store is so popular is because the clothing is edible."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Don't tempt me."

I believe that Rachel set a record that day for fastest shopping spree. From just that one store, she managed to double the amount of clothes that she bought from the other four stores. Naturally, she made me carry them all for threatening one of her favorite stores.

By the time we made it to the food court, Ax and I were exhausted. The only reason that we had had to carry all those clothes was because Rachel was paying for the Cinnabons. Luckily for us, she wasn't so ruthless as to make us get our own food after carrying all her purchases. While she was gone, I saw a familiar face weaving its way through the crowds.

"Cassie! What are you doing here?" I asked.

"Well, you two weren't at home, so I thought you might be here," she said. "Besides, I wanted to get _Norm_ used to the regular hustle and bustle."

It wasn't until she said "Norm's" name that I realized there was someone else standing behind her. "Norm" was turning his head back and forth so fast that I thought he was going to give himself whiplash. Every time a loud speaker would screech or some mall rat would squeal, he'd jump out of his skin. He had yet to fall over, but with the way he kept turning his head, it wouldn't take long.

I had a sneaking suspicion that I knew who it was and I couldn't help but groan. There was only one way to find out if I was right without stopping talking in the "code" that we had adopted for public places was to get "Norm" to say something.

"Hi Norm, I'm Tobais Fangor," I said.

"Hello! .! I am. Mmmmmmm. Norm. No arm. Nerm. Norm."

Definitely Noorlin.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Me no own.

A.n.: This is like the second thing that I've done today here on Fanfiction!!! Yay! Just for your reading pleasure, and for the speed of updating, this chapter isn't edited. Neither is the next one (which is in the works). But think of it this way, you're getting two updates in a relatively short period of time, whereas I generally take FOREVER to update. Take your pick, fast updates with minimal editing, or super slow but edited chapters. I promise, though, that they won't be painful to read. I respect your brains too much for that. I apologize for the shortness.

Also, the next couple of chapters will be mainly from Tobias's p.o.v. with a little Noorlin at the end of each so you know what he thinks now.

Vote on the poll please!

**Chapter 8**

_Last time:_

_It wasn't until she said "Norm's" name that I realized there was someone else standing behind her. "Norm" was turning his head back and forth so fast that I thought he was going to give himself whiplash. Every time a loud speaker would screech or some mall rat would squeal, he'd jump out of his skin. He had yet to fall over, but with the way he kept turning his head, it wouldn't take long._

_I had a sneaking suspicion that I knew who it was and I couldn't help but groan. There was only one way to find out if I was right without stopping talking in the "code" that we had adopted for public places was to get "Norm" to say something._

"_Hi Norm, I'm Tobais Fangor," I said._

"_Hello! .! I am. Mmmmmmm. Norm. No arm. Nerm. Norm."_

_Definitely Noorlin._

Quickly, I turned to Cassie to see if she had lost her mind. Nope, she looked perfectly sane. The laughter in her eyes was what worried me though. It was almost as if she knew that I would be overly flustered with Noorlin being here. If that was what she thought, she was right on the money.

But, I had to chalk this one up to coincidence. There was just no way that she could've known that Ax and I were planning on "procuring" some Cinnabons. She must've just wanted to have him try something other than her father's infamous chili (which he was making that night.) If he was anything like Ax, he would adore anything he could get his mouth on.

Speaking of which…

"Cassie, I do believe that you should keep a better eye on "Norm"," I said as my morphed grandfather began following the example of the people around him and started "eating." Unfortunately, he had yet to get some actual food, so he was just eating a left over napkin from the people who were sitting here first.

Cassie just rolled her eyes and pulled the napkin out of his mouth as best she could without ripping it.

"Like son, like father?" Rachel asked, as she handed out the food she had just bought.

"Yep," Cassie groaned. "At least he has yet to try dryer lint and cigarette butts."

--Or grass!—Ax added in, in thought speak as his mouth was far too full with gooey Cinnabons to actually talk without choking.

We all had to laugh at that one. Ever since Ax had first tried food, he'd become addicted to taste. Anything and everything that you could possibly imagine, Ax had tried. After the first couple of generally non-edible items went into his mouth, we made sure that he had some kind of list in that expansive memory of his of what to eat and what not to eat.

"What. Tuh. Tuh. Is-suh "dryer-er-ruh lint-tuh"?" Noorlin asked in the almost traditional "Andalite stutter."

"It's something that is not edible," I answered. "Unfortunately, Ax here thought that everything made by humans was edible and tried some. Ax, wipe your mouth!"

Ax's mouth was covered in frosting, as were his eyebrows, cheeks, and he even managed to get some in his hair.

"I think he's going to need a bath," Rachel said as she watched Ax struggle to get the stickiness off himself with the paper napkin. Now he had paper stuck to his chin, and, combined with the frosting in his eyebrows and hair, he was beginning to look like a slightly demented Colonel Sanders.

Even Noorlin, who had been watching the entire scene with interest, was slightly disgusted by this.

"Or, at the very least, we're all going to need to remember to bring baby wipes whenever we eat out," I said. "Hey, Norm, do you want anything to eat?"

Noorlin just kept watching his son struggle with the frosting that was out of reach of his tongue. "No, thank-kuh you. Ooo."

Thankfully, the two hour time limit was almost up, so Ax and I had to leave. Rachel was rather sad that she'd lost her two pack mules, but, honestly, she should've thought about that before dragging us through all those stores.

"Oh, Tobias. Wait up," Cassie said as we stood. "Jake is trying to set up a "pool" party. If you want to come, just ask him tomorrow afternoon."

"I will," I said, catching the coded phrases rather easily. It was rather sad how easy speaking in code had become for us. "Will Norm be there?"

"Yes, Jake's planning on inviting him too."

"See you then," I said, inclining my head slightly to Noorlin but keeping my eyes locked on his. Ax had taught me that was a symbol of respect that elder Andalites appreciated when the full "farewell" ritual was not possible.

* * *

Noorlin's p.o.v.

I may have had doubts about Tobias, but it seems as though he truly is trying to be welcoming to me. All the other humans, while they tried to be kind, they weren't very respectful. It was interesting for a while to learn about what problems teenage humans encountered (more than any well-raised Andalite would ever have), but I honestly couldn't take much more.

Tobias, on the other hand, I never talked to. I knew he had secrets, I just thought that he was hiding being a Yeerk.

But when he left the "food court" that day, it was almost as if he knew how to respect an elder Andalite. The only Andalite that he had access to (to my knowledge) was Aximili, but Aximili would never break the law in that way. Learning about the Andalite culture was added to the law of Seerow's kindness soon after the Hork-Bajir war in an effort to prevent opposing cultures from learning about their impending doom should we fail to prevent a Yeerk invasion.

If Aximili didn't break the law, then how did a morph capable human learn about the Andalite culture?

I had never actually seen him morph, but I assumed that he was human. But there was a chance he wasn't. He could've been Andalite at one time.

That child was becoming more and more of a mystery to me the longer I stayed on Earth! He's not a Yeerk, but he has secrets he can't tell an Andalite. He could be an Andalite, but if he tells me his secrets he could die. He could be a human, but he knows about Andalite culture and possibly even Andalite rituals.

Suddenly, I wished I had never left the simple confines of the homeworld.


End file.
